Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 3, September 1, 2024
RELATES TO:
KRS
194A.050,
194A.505,
194A.990, 7 C.F.R. Part
246,
278.6,
21
U.S.C. 802
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY:
42
U.S.C. 1786 and 7 C.F.R. Part 246 provide for
grants for state operation of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for
Women, Infants and Children (WIC).
KRS
194A.050(1) authorizes the
Cabinet for Health and Family Services to promulgate administrative regulations
as necessary to qualify for the receipt of federal funds. This administrative
regulation establishes definitions for the terms used in 902 KAR Chapter
18.
Section 1. Definitions.
(1) "Above-50-percent vendor" means a vendor
that receives or is expected to receive more than fifty (50) percent of its
annual food sales revenue from WIC benefits.
(2) "Alcohol" is defined by
KRS
241.010(1).
(3) "Alcoholic beverage" is defined by
KRS
241.010(2).
(4) "Approved product listing" or "APL" means
an electronic list or file identifying the food items approved by the state WIC
agency for purchase with WIC food instruments by food category and
subcategory.
(5) "Authorized
supplemental food" means a supplemental food authorized by the state or a local
agency for issuance to a particular participant.
(6) "Cash value voucher" is defined by
7
C.F.R. 246.2.
(7) "Certifying professional authority" means
a person authorized to determine eligibility and certify persons for the WIC
program.
(8) "Class" means food
sale classification.
(9)
"Compliance buy" means a covert, on-site investigation.
(10) "Contract price" means the price for a
WIC food item negotiated between the state WIC agency and the vendor.
(11) "Dual participation" means simultaneous
participation in the WIC Program and in:
(a)
One (1) or more WIC clinics; or
(b)
The Commodity Supplemental Food Program.
(12) "Electronic WIC benefits" or "eWIC"
means a Web-based technology that allows WIC participants to obtain food
benefits by using a plastic debit-type card with a personal identification
number (PIN) at authorized participating WIC retailers.
(13) "Exempt infant formula" is defined by
7
C.F.R. 246.2.
(14) "FNS" means Food and Nutrition
Services.
(15) "Food instrument" is
defined by
7
C.F.R. 246.2.
(16) "Good letter with exceptions" means a
written notification letter that:
(a) A
compliance buy has been conducted in the store;
(b) A violation occurred; and
(c) No sanction was applied due to lack of
pattern of incidence.
(17) "High risk vendor" means a vendor having
a high probability of noncompliance with KRS Chapter 194A,
42
U.S.C. 1786, 7 C.F.R. Part 246,
7
C.F.R. 278.6, or 902 KAR Chapter
18.
(18) "Integrated" means a
commercial system that fully incorporates eWIC functionality into an existing
cash register (ECR) system.
(19)
"Inventory audit" means an examination of food invoices or other proof of
purchase to determine if a vendor has purchased sufficient quantities of
authorized supplemental food to provide to participants the quantities of food
items redeemed by the vendor during a given period of time.
(20) "Investigation" means a method used by
the state WIC agency to detect a WIC program violation.
(21) "Local agency" means an applying or
participating WIC agency.
(22) "Low
variance" means the redemption of the same type of food item at the same price
or within a narrow price range.
(23) "Medical foods" means enteral products
that are specifically formulated to provide nutritional support for individuals
with a qualifying condition when the use of conventional foods is precluded,
restricted, or inadequate.
(24)
"Not to exceed" or "NTE" means:
(a)
FNS-approved cost containment methodology whereby WIC authorized vendors are
subject to price limitations; and
(b) the maximum amount that Kentucky will pay
for a specific food item identified by its UPC code.
(25) "Participant" means:
(a) A pregnant, breastfeeding, or postpartum
woman or an infant or child who is receiving supplemental food or food
instruments;
(b) The breastfed
infant of a breastfeeding woman who is receiving WIC program
benefits;
(c) The parent or
caretaker of an infant or child receiving a WIC benefit; and
(d) The proxy for a person identified in
paragraphs (a), (b), or (c) of this subsection.
(26) "Participant violation" means an
intentional, knowing act of a participant that violates KRS Chapter 194A,
42
U.S.C. 1786, 7 C.F.R. Part 246,
7
C.F.R. 278.6, or 902 KAR Chapter
18.
(27) "Peer Groups" means
categories into which vendors are assigned based upon sales volume and
region.
(28) "PIN" means a unique
four (4) digit personal identification number designated by the WIC
participant.
(29) "Point of sale"
or "POS" means the system supporting WIC/eWIC food transactions in a store
checkout lane.
(30) "POS device"
means a physical electronic cash register or dedicated point of sale hardware
or terminal that is used for WIC processing.
(31) "Positive buy" means a compliance buy,
on-site review, or on-line WIC transaction review that provides evidence that a
violation of the vendor agreement or KRS Chapter 194A,
42
U.S.C. 1786, 7 C.F.R. Part 246,
7
C.F.R. 278.6, or 902 KAR Chapter 18 has
occurred.
(32) "Price look up" or
"PLU" means a four (4) or five (5) digit identifier used to identify individual
and bulk produce.
(33) "Proxy"
means a person designated by a female participant or by a parent or caretaker
of an infant or child participant to obtain and transact a food instrument or
cash value voucher to obtain a supplemental food or foods on behalf of a
participant.
(34) "Routine
monitoring" means overt, on-site monitoring during which representatives of the
WIC program identify themselves to vendor personnel.
(35) "Rural" means any area not defined as
urban.
(36) "Shelf price" means the
price displayed on the food item, shelf, or display case where the food item is
stored.
(37) "SNAP" means the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as the Food Stamp
Program.
(38) "Standard bar code"
means a printed series of lines of varying width on a container or product that
can be read by an optical scanner to determine product classification and
price.
(39) "Staple food items"
means meat, poultry, fish, bread, breadstuff, cereals, vegetables, fruit,
vegetable and fruit juices, and dairy products, excluding items such as coffee,
tea, cocoa, carbonated and uncarbonated beverages, condiments, and
spices.
(40) "State WIC agency"
means the Cabinet for Health and Family Services or its designated
representative.
(41) "Systematic
review" means a review of electronic WIC transactions by the state WIC agency
or its representatives to monitor systematic violations of the
program.
(42) "Trafficking" means
the redemption or exchange of WIC food instruments for cash, a firearm,
ammunition, an explosive, or a controlled substance as defined in
21
U.S.C. 802.
(43) "Unauthorized food" means foods not
authorized by the state or local agency for issuance to a particular
participant.
(44) "Unique customer"
means the number of unduplicated individuals that have one (1) or more
transactions at the sanctioned vendor during the specified time
period.
(45) "UPC" means a barcode
consisting of twelve (12) digits used for tracking trade items in retail
stores.
(46) "Urban" means a
metropolitan area as defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
Bulletin No. 13-01.
(47) "Vendor"
means a sole proprietorship, partnership, cooperative association, corporation,
or other business entity operating one (1) or more stores by providing
authorized supplemental foods to participants under a retail food delivery
system.
(48) "Vendor authorization"
means the process by which the state WIC agency assesses, selects, and enters
into an agreement or contract with a store that applies or subsequently
re-applies to be authorized as a vendor.
(49) "Vendor overcharge" is defined by
7
C.F.R. 246.2.
(50) "Vendor violation" means an intentional
or unintentional act of a vendor's current owner, officers, agent, or employee,
with or without the knowledge of management, that violates the vendor agreement
or KRS Chapter 194A,
42
U.S.C. 1786, 7 C.F.R. Part 246,
7
C.F.R. 278.6, or 902 KAR Chapter
18.
(51) "WIC agency" means a local
health department or agency contracted with the state to deliver WIC
services.
(52) "WIC benefits" means
a voucher, check, electronic benefits transfer card (EBT), coupon, or document
that is used by a participant to obtain supplemental foods.
(53) "WIC program" or "WIC" means the Special
Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children authorized by
Section 17 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966,
42
U.S.C. 1786, and administered pursuant to
42
U.S.C. 1786 and 7 C.F.R. Part 246 .
STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
KRS
194A.050,
211.090(3),
7 C.F.R. Part 246,
42
U.S.C. 1786